These Were The Best-Performing Blue Chips Of 2020

Recovering after a record plunge triggered by the coronavirus pandemic in March, domestic equity benchmarks ended 2020 with the best annual return in three years. The S&P BSE Sensex index gained 6,497.59 points and the broader NSE Nifty 50 gauge surged 1,813.30 points in the Covid-struck year, breaking a series of records to log annual returns of 15.75 per cent and 14.90 per cent respectively. Stupendious demand for IT and healthcare, and robust foreign fund inflows backed the recovery in domestic share markets, say analysts.

Thirty three blue-chip shares in the 50-strong Nifty basket ended the year on a positive note. Drug makers Divi's Laboratories, Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Cipla -- which saw their shares surge 108 per cent, 81 per cent and 71 per cent respectively -- and IT majors Infosys and HCL Technologies -- gaining 71 per cent and 67 per cent respectively -- were the biggest index components this year. 

Here are the best-performing Nifty shares of 2020:

While 20 shares in the 30-scrip index finished the year higher, top 10 performers gave annual returns to the tune of 30.59-80.88 per cent. On the other hand, NTPC, State Bank of India, Axis Bank, ONGC and IndusInd Bank -- declining between 16.59 per cent and 40.76 per cent -- were the top Sensex laggards.

The recovery was broad based, as reflected in the S&P BSE 500 index -- the broadest index on BSE aimed at capturing all major industries in the economy -- which had more than 300 winners during the year.